Ultimate site seeing tour
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SE D stands for Site Equipment Demonstration but for the aver age truck operator it's more of a Special Equipment Display. If you're a heavy haulier, or a plant contractor or construction company with trucks, the annual three-day event at Fen Farm is likely to be the one show in the year you'll go to.
Faced with declining home markets (according to Goldhofer boss Ralf Schiller, the German construction vehicle market "is dead") Continental specialist trailer builders are clearly eyeing up the UK for more sales.
Dutch maker Nooteboom used SED to unveil its hydraulically steered Plant Master which was designed specifically for the British market, While steered bogie low-loaders are common across the Channel they've still got some way to go in the UK. Why try and sell them over here? "They offer far less tyre wear—especially on British 'mini' roundabouts!" says Nooteboom's Johan van de Water.
Belgian manufacturer Faymonville also dipped its toe in the water at SED '96 with Alain Faymonville declaring succinctly: "We are here to find a dealer."
However, the Continentals might find that British waters are no less stormy. The UK construction industry is going through a tough period. The road building programme "is on its knees" according to King Trailer's sales and marketing director Mark Carrington. "You'd normally expect people to be busy by the time the daffodils are out—but the new Government projects that would have kicked in now haven't. Even the road planing boys are complaining."
Meanwhile Andover Trailer's joint general manager Ivan Collins reports that all the specialist trailer makers are having to struggle to get any kind of decent margin here, The arrival of a concerted Continental attack will hardly make that situation any better.
• Dutch specialist trailer builder Nooteboom used SED '96 to launch its Plant Master 60-tonne payload detachable gooseneck trioxle low-loader with 565mm deck height into the UK. Wheels on the Euro 60-03 UK model are steered hydraulically—the suspension is hydraulic too. Steering wedge adjacent to kingpin transfers the turning movement of the tractor to the back bogie via twin independent pressurised circuits. Devon-based South West Heavy Haulage has taken one of only two Plant Masters sold in the UK—the other has gone to Weldon Plant Hire. Plant Master can operate on Special Types Cat 3 with 60 tonnes load. Price is in the "mid £60,000s, depending on spec".
• Edbro has entered the electronic on-board weighing equipment battle with its own Load Manager system, seen at SED for the first time and fitted in a Leyland Dof 85.360 operated by FL Gamble. System measures GVW via strain
gauges fixed underneath the tipping ram mounting plate {right) and rear tipping hinge bracket. In-cab display unit shows overall weight. The cost on a new chassis is £2,500 fitted.
• Belgian manufacturer Faymonville exhibited at SED for the first time with a brace of special types trailers including its two-axle "Featherweight" low-bed semi (on top) complete with hydraulically steered air sprung rear axles. It tips the scales at just 9.4 tonnes offering a 28.6-tonne payload al 38 tonnes GCW. The 18tonne tare weight "Heavy Light" four-axle recessed neck Low-loader () delivers a 73-tonne payload. Faymonville builds some 200 trailers a year with 80% exported.
Iveco Ford's Oldham-built 345hp 9.5litre engined EuroTrakker 320E34E eightwheeler has Norde Hendrickson rubber suspended back bogie and single-reduction back axles. For heavier going offroad, the 340E34H has double-reduction axles and steel-sprung back axles. The sleeper-cab example at SED was in Alan Price & Sons {Bargoedl colours and equipped with K&J Withey Maxiload 3 35yd alloy body along with Lincoln Quicklube ACL system, PM On-Board weighing system and Evertaut roll tarp.
• Cummins CELECT-contralled QSK19 19-litre straight-six engine is developed from the old K19 used by Aussie Roadtrain operators. But even the most power-hungry UK operator would have a hard time justifying its 750hp—or its weight! However, there was some practical news at SED for 14-litre users. Cummins is offering an overhaul kit for preEuro-1 NT truck engines which includes liners, rings, pistons, conrod set and top gasket. Based on its TriTech Plus piston design the kit will help cut oil consumption on older NT engines thanks to improved oil control and compression rings. Cost is around £1,000. • The back end of King Trailers' new low-height GTS 46/3 triaxle stepframe low loader has been redesigned for improved operator safety. The adjustable Sidewinder ramps will match the track of whatever plant is being loaded on the back. The rear light cluster fright) also swings out from under the ramps so the hazard flashers are always visible. A simple but effective pendulum weight keeps the ramp marker lights in posi tion too when loading. The hydraulically operated "Mantis" ramps also gain heavy-duty rubber bump stops to keep noise down!
• Yellow Caterpillar engines are legendary in plant equipment. At SED there was a 7.2-litre 3126 charge-cooled straight-six with Cat's own Hydraulic Electronic Unit Injection (HELM system. HEUI uses hydraulic energy from the engine's oil circuit for fuel injection. Injection timing and fuel metering is all controlled electronically With 300hp rating and 568kg tare weight it would make a cracking engine for a tipper. However, for the moment Cat's only UK truck customer Foden is sticking with
the 10.3-litre 3176—currently offered in the 3000 Series—
while the 14-litre 3406E makes its debut in the 4000 Series before the end of the Summer. • LW Vass of Ampthill refurbishes ex-MOD Bedford all-wheel-drive MKs for construction companies as fuel and water tankers. SED line-up included this dust suppression water tanker for road builders. Strict off-road only use means there's no need for plating and testing Mild steel tanker barrels are supplied to Vass which fits them itself. Cost for a refurbished 4x4 tanker is around £12,500.
• Hino's FY1P eight-legger has revised front end to give better clearance. There's also now the option of multi-leaf front springs instead of the normal parabolics and for the first time a ZF Ecosplit 16-speed synchromesh box in place of the regular nine-speed Fuller Roadranger. With the approach of Euro-2 the current 300hp 8 8-litre and 350hp 12.8-litre Hino engines used in the six and eight-wheelers look set to be replaced by an all-new 11litre charge-cooled engine. Show model had Thompsons Muckmaster all steel body fitted.
• When its added to the Unimog lineup later this year the shorter 2.83m wheelbase U130 Unimog will offer increased manoeuvrability over existing 3.47m wheelbase U140L chassis. Both share the some four-cylinder 140hp Mercedes Euro-2 chargecooled engine and 7.5 tonne gross weight with 3.5 tonne payload. Electricity companies and other utilities are the biggest buyers of the 100 or so Unimogs sold in the UK. The big news at SED is that Mercedes has a new light specialist 4x4 chassis called the UX1 up its sleeve, which will compete against the likes of Multicar at 3.5 tonnes GVW and below.
• Feedback from users has prompted Boughton to offer an improved Mk II version of its Kwikcova automatic sheeting system for use on hooklift waste containers. Seen here on a Renault Maxter G340ti eight-legger, the Kwikcova is available in three versions and can handle containers from 2040ycli capacity and up to 7m long. New side arms can be extended to take account of containers with bulging sidewalls! Cost for the complete hydraulically operated system is around £5,750. • RMC builds its own 6m' capacity Mark 52 mixer on Seddon Atkinson's C-Series powered 26.275C lightweight six-wheeler chassis. The standard Strata 6x4's rubber suspension is replaced by lighter four-spring back bogie; 8.0-tonne capacity front axle has three-leaf parabolic springs instead of the usual two. Front mounted PTO works off the end of the crank and drives Sauer Sundstrand equipment. Seddon has switched to Metalastic front cab mountings on its 4x2, 6x4 and municipal rigids in place of the previous front torsion bars. Change offers firmer cab ride and better roll stability.
• Andover Trailers showed off its low-profile hydraulic beavertail plant carrier body for the first time on a Volvo FFIT 2 6x2. Running on 295/60 R22.5 tyres the deck rides at 1,048mm but can be dropped down to 968mm for loading. Also on the stand was three-axle 48-tonne GT\A/ special types trailer from Goldhofer. The German manufacturer's products are marketed in the UK by AT. Designed to carry heavy agricultural equipment throughout Europe the special shallow-neck extendible trailer has been bought by Richard Long Transport of Wymondham.
• German mixer maker Liebherr has around 20% of the UK market—this 2527 Merc is one of 60 six-wheelers ordered by Pioneer. Traditional 6m' mixer is fixed to on integrated frame via flexing Uclamps which help isolate vehicle chassis From drum rotation compared to normal pedestal mounting arrangement. Mercedes engine has rear, camshaft driven PTO and ZF drum gearbox.
• Milton-Keynes based Aceplant builds fully bunded static and mobile fuel dispensers including this trailer-mounted 1,000 gallon capacity tank specifically designed for use in environmentally sensitive areas including landfill, quarry and waste disposal sites . "Bundie-Bowser" comes with 12 volt electric pump, fuel metering gauge, 10ft dispensing hose and nozzle, park brake and work platform. Price is £4,300. As new Environmental Agency flexes its muscles, operators will have to be more careful with fuel storage.